Automatons were invented just two short years ago by a wealthy businessman named Feo Zorzi who acquired the rights to their creation from someone else yet is contractually referred to as the inventor although he did not originally invent them. They were originally not considered sentient and feat that they would completely replace already underpaying jobs with free infinite labor led to a series of strikes and attacks that culminated in the Obratan Riots and a series of terrorist attacks by the KCB which threatened to spread into a wider campaign of political violence the likes of which the empire has not seen in a generation. It was the awakening of the first Automaton, referred to as Vaati, the Yskoi word for father, which led to an end of the conflict. He argued publicly that the automatons were alive, and unconscious but sentient. As others began to awaken, Zorzi’s argument that they were his legal property was tried in court by Vaati with KCB backing, the response being a declaration of Automaton personhood. All automatons were freed, with Zorzi being obligated to provide back pay. The legal battles have continued with a spiteful Zorzi suing the automatons for the cost of their own creation (which was overruled) and Vaati for replicating Automatons without heeding his patent (which was ruled in Zorzis favor. Vaati is currently in prison As the case proceeds to higher courts.) Vaati’s push for nonviolent resistance and willing entrance to prison instead of going into hiding has made him a household name. He is the first renowned Automaton, and is idolized by not only his fellow constructs, but also many within the more moderate wing of the KCB. As for automatons, they struggle to find their place in the world, often being the first of their kind to do anything. No one is certain what they are capable of, how long they will live, or how their race will one day be defined.